Upwelling events, coastal offshore exchange, links to biogeochemical processes - Highlights from the Baltic Sea Sciences Congress at Rostock University, Germany, 19-22 March 2007

The Baltic Sea Science Congress was held at Rostock University, Germany, from 19 to 22 March 2007. In the session entitled"Upwelling events, coastal offshore exchange, links to biogeochemical processes" 20 presentations were given,including 7 talks and 13 posters related to the theme of the session.This paper summarises new findings of the upwelling-related studies reported in the session. It deals with investigationsbased on the use of in situ and remote sensing measurements as well as numerical modelling tools. The biogeochemicalimplications of upwelling are also discussed.Our knowledge of the fine structure and dynamic considerations of upwelling has increased in recent decades with the advent ofhigh-resolution modern measurement techniques and modelling studies. The forcing and the overall structure, duration and intensity ofupwelling events are understood quite well. However, the quantification of related transports and the contribution to the overall mixingof upwelling requires further research. Furthermore, our knowledge of the links between upwelling and biogeochemical processes is stillincomplete. Numerical modelling has advanced to the extent that horizontal resolutions of c. 0.5 nautical miles can now be applied,which allows the complete spectrum of meso-scale features to be described. Even the development of filaments can be describedrealistically in comparison with high-resolution satellite data.But the effect of upwelling at a basin scale and possible changes under changing climatic conditions remain open questions

Correlated variability of upwelling and tracers near the tropical tropopause

Tropical upwelling should exert strong influence on temperatures and on tracers with large vertical gradients in the lower stratosphere. We test this behavior by comparing three upwelling estimates calculated from ERA‐Interim reanalysis data with observed temperatures in the tropical lower stratosphere, and with measurements of ozone and carbon monoxide (CO) from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) satellite instrument. Time series of temperature, ozone and CO are well correlated in the tropical lower stratosphere, and we quantify the influence of tropical upwelling on this joint variability. Strong coherent annual cycles observed in each quantity are found to reflect the seasonal cycle in upwelling. Other contributions to the zonal mean tracer budgets are chemical production and loss and eddy mixing. We use data from the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM) to investigate the seasonality and spatial structure of the different terms in the balances. Tropical upwelling, temperatures and tracers are significantly correlated also when isolating subseasonal timescales. This demonstrates the importance of upwelling in forcing transient variability in the lower tropical stratosphere

Dynamic features of successive upwelling events in the Baltic Sea - a numerical case study

Coastal upwelling often reveals itself during the thermal stratification season as an abrupt sea surface temperature (SST) drop. Its intensity depends not only on the magnitude of an upwelling-favourable wind impulse but also on the temperature stratification of the water column during the initial stage of the event. When a "chain" of upwelling events is taking place, one event may play a part in forming the initial stratification for the next one; consequently, SST may drop significantly even with a reduced wind impulse. Two upwelling events were simulated on the Polish coast in August 1996 using a three-dimensional, baroclinic prognostic model. The model results proved to be in good agreement with in situ observations and satellite data. Comparison of the simulated upwelling events show that the first one required a wind impulse of 28000 kg m-1 s-1 to reach its mature, full form, whereas an impulse of only 7500 kg m-1 s-1 was sufficient to bring about a significant drop in SST at the end of the second event. In practical applications like operational modelling, the initial stratification conditions prior to an upwelling event should be described with care in order to be able to simulate the coming event with very good accuracy

Biological and physical oceanographic observations pertaining to the trawl fishery in a region of persistent coastal upwelling

An upwelling episode in the Point Sal region of the central California coast is examined by using data obtained by a data buoy. The episodes was interrupted by the abrupt abatement of the strong wind which promotes coastal upwelling. The mean hourly upwelling index is calculated to be higher than the 20 year mean monthly value. During 3 days of light wind commercial bottom trawl operations were possible. Shipboard estimates of chlorophyll content in surface waters during trawling show the high concentrations that are indicative of a rich biomass of phytoplankton, a result of the upwelling episode. Satellite imagery shows the extent of the upwelling water to be of the order of 100 km offshore; the result of many upwelling episodes. Shipboard echo sounder data show the presence of various delmersal species and of zooplakton; the latter graze on the phytoplankton in the upper euphotic layers. The fish catch data are recorded according to species for 2 days of trawling, and the catch per trawl hour is recorded

State of the California current 2013-14: El niño looming

In 2013, the California current was dominated by strong coastal upwelling and high productivity. Indices of total cumulative upwelling for particular coastal locations reached some of the highest values on record. Chlorophyll a levels were high throughout spring and summer. Catches of upwelling-related fish species were also high. After a moderate drop in upwelling during fall 2013, the California current system underwent a major change in phase. Three major basin-scale indicators, the PDO, the NPGO, and the ENSO-MEI, all changed phase at some point during the winter of 2013/14. The PDO changed to positive values, indicative of warmer waters in the North Pacific; the NPGO to negative values, indicative of lower productivity along the coast; and the MEI to positive values, indicative of an oncoming El Niño. Whereas the majority of the California Current system appears to have transitioned to an El Niño state by August 2014, based on decreases in upwelling and chlorophyll a concentration, and increases in SST, there still remained pockets of moderate upwelling, cold water, and high chlorophyll a biomass at various central coast locations, unlike patterns seen during the more major El Niños (e.g., the 97-98 event). Catches of rockfish, market squid, euphausiids, and juvenile sanddab remained high along the central coast, whereas catches of sardine and anchovy were low throughout the CCS. 2014 appears to be heading towards a moderate El Niño state, with some remaining patchy regions of upwellingdriven productivity along the coast. Superimposed on this pattern, three major regions have experienced possibly non-El Niño-related warming since winter: the Bering Sea, the Gulf of Alaska, and offshore of southern California. It is unclear how this warming may interact with the predicted El Niño, but the result will likely be reduced growth or reproduction for many key fisheries species

Chemical Heterogeneities along the South Atlantic Mid-Ocean-Ridge (5-11°S): Shallow or Deep Recycling of Ocean Crust?

Between 5° and 11°S, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge displays anomalous crustal thickness and geochemical compositions, thought to be related to either small scale upper mantle heterogeneities or a weak, diffuse mantle plume. We report new high precision trace element and Sr, Nd and Pb (DS) isotope data for 72 ridge axis samples and 9 off-axis seamount samples along with U–Th–Ra disequilibria data for off axis seamounts at c. 9.7°S. At least four distinct components are needed to explain the geochemical variations along the ridge: 1) a common depleted (D-MORB-like) component near and north of 4.8–7.6°S, 2) an enriched component upwelling beneath Ascension Island and the northern A1 ridge segment (segment numbers ascend from north to south), 3) an enriched component upwelling beneath the A2 ridge segment, and 4) an enriched component upwelling beneath the line of seamounts east of the A3 segment and the A3 and A4 segments. The A1 and the A3+A4 segment lavas form well-defined mixing arrays from Ascension Island and the A3 seamounts respectively to the depleted D-MORB component. We propose that the enriched components represent different packages of subducted ocean crust and/or ocean island basalt (OIB) type volcanic islands and seamounts that have either been recycled through 1) the shallow mantle, upwelling passively beneath the ridge system or 2) the deep mantle via an actively upwelling heterogeneous mantle plume that interacts with the ridge system